"Here, the hospital of the future is going to be the hospital of next year."
So says Joe Longo, vice president of New Parkland Hospital Technology at Parkland Health & Hospital System in Dallas. The new hospital is scheduled to begin admitting patients in mid-2015. It was originally intended to bring Parkland up-to-date, replacing the current, six decades-old building. However, hospital officials saw the construction project as an opportunity to go further. An additional $80 million beyond facility costs has been invested into new technology and integration that will streamline hospital operations and improve patient care, according to Lou Saksen, senior vice president of New Parkland construction.
The concept is to make New Parkland a "digital hospital" — a more automated, integrated IT environment. All of the hospital's existing IT systems are moving to the new facility, and additional systems and medical devices will supplement and enhance existing systems.
Most importantly, all of the technology will be connected through a common "backbone," allowing for an unprecedented level of device and system integration, says Fernando Martinez, PhD, senior vice president and CIO of Parkland.
An example of this new level of device and system integration is the fully-IP driven footwall TVs in every patient room. The TVs will be integrated with many of the hospital's systems, meaning they're not just for entertainment. "It's integrated with the nurse call system so they can call for a nurse if they need something, but it also allows patients to access educational materials, see parts of their EMR, communicate with their doctor in real time, and see upcoming appointments," says Mr. Longo. "It's also integrated with the dietary system so they can order or view meals, but their viewing will be context specific — if their doctor recommended low-sodium, they'll only see options for low-sodium meals."
All the new technology for the hospital was selected based on their ability to solve a problem or improve a process. "We tried to avoid putting in technology for technology's sake, or throwing together cool bells and whistles without a direct, workflow-enhancing purpose," says Dr. Martinez. Hospital officials decided to focus technology investments in six main areas — patient experience, digital media management, biomedical device integration, security, real-time location systems and radio frequency identification, and end user and communication devices.
Focusing on these areas, the hospital will have a virtual desktop infrastructure to enable single sign-on and mobile EHR access, "smart beds" that will alert clinicians when a patient with a high risk for falls is about to get out of bed, automated kiosks that will improve the patient check-in process and an integrated RFID security system extending from staff badges to infant security. Much of this technology has been implemented at other hospitals, says Dr. Martinez, but rarely has it all been integrated at the same facility.
Parkland may be one of the first hospitals moving toward an all-digital facility, but it will not be the only, says Dr. Martinez. "We may be trendsetters, but the movement toward digital is already underway," he says. Whether it's to boost care quality, patient engagement or market share in a competitive area, hospitals across the country are looking to reap the benefits of more automated processes and more integration. "It's not a matter of will we all be digital, but when," he says.
However, sunk costs in terms of older facilities or IT systems may be keeping other organizations from making the "quantum leap" Parkland is, says Dr. Martinez, which is why he's grateful the planned construction of the new facility is providing Parkland the opportunity to go digital, especially considering the real beneficiaries of the improvements.
"We're a safety-net hospital, serving some of the neediest people in our community," he says. "It's a magnificent opportunity to do something so grand that's going to benefit people who are underserved."
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